


The Science Of Sanity

by Josephi



Category: RWBY
Genre: Mad Scientist
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-29
Updated: 2020-05-28
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:08:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,146
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24432592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Josephi/pseuds/Josephi
Summary: How far would you be willing to go to end an eternal war? What lines would you be willing to cross for the good of mankind? The Grimm are the next step in human evolution, and one man is willing to do whatever it takes to bring humanity to that point, and end the war with the Grimm.





	1. Success

The next, and hopefully last trial, was to begin soon. He had almost perfected his formula, and once it was complete, humanity's next step in evolution could begin. Dr. Richard Murdoch picked up the latest version of his chemical, a red liquid contained within a glass vial, careful not to damage the casing. He put it in his pocket before strapping on his specialized gas mask with blacked out eyeports, the only thing containing his Semblance. His "gift" was more a curse. Instead of exhaling carbon dioxide, out came a gas that ate through flesh, except his, of course. As a side effect, he was also immune to gas-based threats. Aura could protect against it, but inhaling it directly would still kill you, as Aura doesn't protect against internal damage.

So to combat this, Richard designed a custom reverse gas mask to contain his gas within filters, which he later modified to include a button that, when pressed, would deactivate the filter and unleash the gas. Alternatively, when a filter was filled to capacity, he could utilize it like a grenade, flooding a certain area with flesh-eating toxins.

As he turned on the ventilation fans and stepped out of his office, he strode through the hidden lab. He had constructed it in secret in the heart of Vale, right under the Council's nose. After being exiled from the scientific community, much like Dr. Merlot, the man who had inspired him, he became a fugitive, being unable to leave the lab. So, he struck a deal with the local crime families. He would manufacture illegal substances for them to sell, and in exchange, they would provide him with funding and manpower for his research. Of course, he didn't tell any of them what he was working on, but as long as he provided them with drugs, they didn't care.

He walked through the bleach white halls, his equally white lab coat fluttering behind him, passing an occasional thug that was doing whatever job was assigned to them. He finally reached the test lab, punched the code into the keypad, and walked through the open door. He approached the viewing glass, a control panel in front of it. On the other side of the glass was the test room, with a row of cages built into the opposite wall. He pulled a voice recorder out of his pocket before putting it up to his filter and hitting 'record'.

"Chemical V-1, trial 164, beginning now." He spoke, his voice aged and slightly muffled by the rubber mask. He hit a button on the panel, and one of the cages opened.

"Subject 164, please step forward." He ordered through the mic on the panel. Someone walked out of the cage, clearly frightened.

"W-where am I? Who are you?" He questioned. He was a male wolf Faunus of average height and build, though slightly malnourished from his history of homelessness.

"That is unimportant as of this moment. Please approach the device on the other side of the room." As he said this, he inserted the vial into a port, watching as the liquid was drained. The test subject timidly approached the aforementioned device, a metal sleeve, and began looking it over.

"Insert your arm into the device." The subject did as instructed and placed his arm in the sleeve. It quickly clamped down, restraining him.

"What the hell?!" He shouted in surprise, tugging at it. A needle jabbed into his wrist and began injecting the compound into his body. When it had drained its contents into the man's arm, the clamp released. He stumbled back, coughing excessively, red gas coming out. He fell to the floor and began convulsing as if he were having a seizure. Black mist then began seeping out all of his orifices, including his pores. Eventually, he was completely enveloped by it. Then the man started to grow larger and larger, though he was still veiled in the mist. After several minutes of silence, the mist subsided, and instead of a man, there was a fully grown Alpha Beowolf.

"Test subject has evolved successfully, though appears to be unconscious. Awakening now." He pressed another button, and a high pitch sound started emitting from the speaker. The Grimm immediately awoke, and dove at the glass, intent on shredding the Doctor. However, the glass was heavily reinforced, and work require several breaching charges to even crack. The creature continued it's feeble attempt.

"Subject 164, can you understand me?" He inquired. The beast continued its assault.

"164, do you know what I'm saying?" He questioned again, growing frustrated. No response. He slammed his fist into the console.

"Dammit!" He sighed. "Trial number 164 was a failure, subject remains feral. Termination is scheduled for-" Before he could continue, the Alpha went limp and rested on the floor.

"New development, subject has lost consciousness spontaneously, continuing to observe." His hope was swelling. Maybe this really was the one, then he could finally begin the process of evolving humanity.

The subject eventually woke up, standing on its hind legs and clutching its head like it was nursing a hangover, before growling to itself. It regained its bearings before looking down at itself, and panicking at its appearance.

"Subject 164, can you understand me." Dr. Mardoch asked, hopefully.

It looked at him with wide eyes and nodded. It nodded. It said yes.

"Can you remember your life before this?"

Again, it nodded, starting to realize what happened. Richard couldn't have been more ecstatic. It worked, years of work had finally paid off. But to test if it truly worked, he pressed a final button on his panel, and one of the other cages opened. A lesser Beowolf walked out, sniffing around. Richard killed the lights in the observation room so the Grimm couldn't see him. The subject immediately backed itself into a corner, fearing for it's life. The other Grimm trudged up to the subject, sniffed it a bit, then left it alone, preferring to look for a way out of the test room. Richard reactivated the lights, and the Grimm began attacking the glass after spotting him.

"Trial 164 was a complete success, subject successfully evolved and, after a few moments of savagery, regained it's humanity and began acting normally. Should anyone find this tape, let it be known that I, Dr. Richard Mardoch, has discovered a perfect way to end the war between Man and Grimm. End log." With that, he turned off the voice recorder and replaced it in his pocket. It was time for him to make history.

**Junior's Club, one week later**

Junior was relaxing in his office, cooling off after that yellow haired bitch came and trashed the place again. As he was about to get a drink, his Scroll started buzzing. He looked at the number, and saw it was unknown, though he could hazard a guess as to who it was.

"Who is this" He answered.

" _Hello Mr. Xiong!"_ A very familiar voice answered.

"Dr. Murdoch, what a surprise. I'm guessing you need money?"

" _No actually, I have a very special gift for you. My experiments have resulted in complete success, and as a result, I have improved one of your men beyond human ability."_ That piqued his interest. Whatever the madman had been doing worked? He had to see this.

"Alright, when can you send him back?"

" _I'm afraid it isn't that simple. Come to the docks, I'll be waiting."_ With those final words, he hung up. So whatever it was he did, it can't be shown in public. Interesting. He'd definitely have to go now. He would bring security, in case he tried anything, but he'd been working with him long enough to know that he wouldn't. He wasn't a back-stabbing type of person. He hoped anyway.

**The Docks**

Dr. Murdoch was getting worried. It had been an hour since he called Mr. Xiong, and he was concerned he wouldn't come. But that didn't make any sense, he dealt primarily in information, and information on his research would be valuable indeed. As he was about to call him again, a car pulled up, along with two others trailing behind, all with tinted windows. The lead car's doors opened, and out came Mr. Xiong along with his bodyguards, the Malachite twins. Out of the other cars came some of Mr. Xiong's men.

"Ah, Mr. Xiong, I'm glad you could make it." He greeted, approaching the burly man. "And I see you've brought extra security, though I'm afraid that won't be necessary."

"Why not?" Hei questioned, looking at the shipping container behind him.

"This is why." He said. He brought out his onyx black revolver he kept with him at all times, then shot the lock off the container. He opened the doors, and inside was a large Alpha Beowolf. Everyone present, except Dr. Murdoch, immediately readied their weapons.

"Have you lost your mind?!" Hei yelled.

"Hold your fire, gentlemen!" He calmly shouted. Nobody fired, though none holstered their weapons.

"What is this? Why isn't it attacking?" Hei questioned.

"This, my friend, is the man I referred to over the call." Richard revealed, smiling madly under his mask.

"What the hell did you do to him?" Hei asked, putting his rocket launcher away and slowly approaching the Grimm, him doing the same.

The mad doctor chuckled lowly. "I have elevated him to the next stage of human evolution. Grimm, but with the mind of a human. He still retains his consciousness and memories, but is stronger, faster, and at no risk of wild Grimm attack."

"So this is what you were doing in your little lab? That explains why you used underhanded dealings to get money. But how do you expect us to get this guy back to the Club without bringing major attention to ourselves?" The rest of the men had gotten used to the normally hostile creature, and had holstered their firearms.

At that, Richard held up a key and gestured to a nearby moving truck.

"What's the catch here? This kinda offer with no strings attached? Kinda hard to believe." He was suspicious. Reasonable, everything considered.

"There is no catch, I only ask that you spread the word of what I can do. That would be payment enough."

Hei ordered his men to start the truck, then got the Alpha to get in the back. He should serve as excellent labor for moving large crates of alcohol, but he wouldn't be able to perform more public jobs That would cause large amounts of panic, and he couldn't be exposed before the next phase of his plan was complete. As Hei and his men drove away with their latest edition, Richard got back in his own personal car, before making his way back to his lab.

**Dr. Murdoch's Laboratory, the next morning**

As Dr. Murdoch once again entered the observation room, he examined the vial in his hand. It was like the one used for chemical V-1, but this time it was filled with a red swirling gas, labeled 'V-2'. He had finally managed to make a stable version of V-1 in gas form. It would be far easier to spread than the liquid form. He took out his tape recorder and hit 'record'.

"Chemical V-2, trial number 1. Formula is stable, and ready for testing. Beginning trial, now."


	2. A Deal With The Devil

Richard was fuming. He had recently found out that Junior had not heeded his warning about keeping any Grimmified men away from the public eye. Granted, he did at first, but when a Huntress-In-Training started trashing his bar, he revealed the three Grimm he had gotten from Richard in an attempt to kill her. He clearly underestimated her, because now two of the three are in custody, Junior is being hunted by the authorities, and there is an official investigation into how the Grimm had been tamed. None of this was public knowledge, but that didn't stop him from finding out. He had just finished one of the V-2 trials, and it was a complete failure. He didn't know how the minor change caused this, but when the subject inhaled the chemical, she completely exploded, so he was already in a foul mood when he learned of Junior's incompetence. He sat down in his office, pulled out his Scroll, and dialed Junior.

" _Who is this?"_ He heard on the other end.

"You know damn well who this is, Mr Xiong. I am extremely disappointed in you. I told you to keep the Grimm out of sight, and yet you ignored my advice. Now there is an official investigation into them, with Headmaster Ozpin's support, even!"

" _Yeah, I know. Look, I'm really stressed out. The cops ain't taking bribes, and I'm being forced to hide, so get off my ass about it."_

"If they find you, you will go to prison for a few years, but if they locate me, they will lock me up for the rest of my life, and may even execute me, so do not talk to me about "stress" you imbecile! You are on very thin ice with me. I have been forced to cut off Grimm supply to the other crime-lords until this dies down. Fortunately for me, they do not blame me, and are surprisingly understanding of my delicate situation. _Un_ fortunately for you, they blame you for all this, so if you mess up again, I will reveal to them where you are hiding."

Junior was silent for a few moments before responding. " _You don't-"_

"Warehouse 3, Sector 1 of the Docks. I implore you to not underestimate me like you did that Huntress." He hung up. Junior didn't know of the tracking device in his Scroll yet. That was good. And if recent events revealed anything, it was that he wouldn't be smart enough to replace it any time soon.

As he was about to get up from his seat and resume his research, his Scroll started buzzing. This irritated him, but he forced it down. He looked at the number, and was surprised to see it was Roman Torchwick. He decided to answer, in case it was important.

"Mr. Torchwick, this is a surprise. Given your line of work I didn't think you would be interested in purchasing Grimm."

" _Hey Dr. Murdoch, I need to meet you for something."_ He said, sounding slightly annoyed.

"You know I don't meet my clients in person, Roman."

" _This isn't about the Grimm, doctor. There's someone who wants to meet you."_

"And who would that be?" There was muffled talking before Roman came back on.

" _She says it's a surprise and that if you don't show up, she'll reveal the location of your lab."_ Oh karma's a bitch. He didn't believe that this mystery woman actually knew where his lab was, he'd had people claim to know where it was since he first started operating in Vale, but that didn't mean he was going to ignore this claim.

"Does she now? Well, since she seems to be so persistent, I will send someone in my stead, and if she so desperately wishes to meet me, she can come to my lab and I will gladly talk." He never intended to actually send anyone, and if she never showed up to his lab, that would prove that she wouldn't be worth his time anyway.

" _Alright, I'll send you the location of where the meeting is."_ He hung up, not bothering to check the message that came after. Richard changed his mind about the research. He was too stressed out to effectively continue his work. He would simply relax in his office with his mask off and possibly sleep. Caffeine can only do so much.

**3 Hours Later**

Richard awoke to banging on his office door. He groggily grabbed his mask, secured it to his head, then activated the fans to ventilate his room of all the gas. He opened the door and saw one of the men working under him standing there, and looking quite a bit nervous.

"Dr. Murdoch, there's someone at the entrance demanding we let her in." This surprised him. He hadn't actually expected her to show up.

"Well then, let her into the lobby." He said. The grunt nodded before running off. Richard put on his lab coat before strolling down to the lobby to meet these unexpected guests. He was glad he constructed a lobby, he had a feeling someone would discover the location of his lab eventually, and the lobby was meant to provide a nice room to talk in should they be less than hostile. He got to the door, and before entering, checked the cameras on his Scroll. There were three people, two females and a male, all seated at one of the tables. The male seemed to be impatient, the green-haired female looked nervous, and the black haired female seemed calm, even a little smug. He assumed she was the leader. He opened the door and entered, not saying anything before sitting down opposite them.

"I am assuming you are the woman Mr. Torchwick spoke of?" He spoke first.

"Yes, I am Cinder Fall. And I'm assuming you're Dr. Murdoch?" She replied.

"Indeed I am, Ms. Fall. Now, please explain to me why you were interested in meeting with me in person?" He guessed she was more effective at negotiations in person, though his mask hiding his face seemed to annoy her.

"I'm very fascinated in your research, doctor. It's very...interesting." She spoke in a seductive tone. Now he knew why she wanted to meet in person. She hoped to use her physical attributes to soften him up. Well, it wouldn't work on him.

"Get to the point, I have much work to be done and I would rather not be delayed by word-play."

"Very well. I have a proposition for you, Dr. Murdoch."

"And what would that be?"

"Well, I understand that you are having issues with attempting to get your hands on test subjects with Aura, am I correct?" She gave a smirk. Richard leaned forward in his chair, resting his arms on the table.

"Are you implying what I think you are?"

"I can provide you with these test subjects, but in exchange, you will provide me with these tamed Grimm whenever I wish."

Richard thought for a moment. He could do so much with Aura users. He could test his theory and confirm or deny it. And, quite frankly, he didn't care how Ms. Fall acquired the subjects. They could be children for all he cared, previous tests had shown that they had the same results as adults. But free Grimm whenever she requested? It was a large request. The ingredients to make Chemical V were not cheap, nor were they easy to come by. Not to mention the subject would have to already be loyal to the person they were going to, hence why the Grimm sent to clients were people who had been loyal to them before their evolution. But it was still a tempting trade.

"What you ask of me is no small thing, Ms. Fall."

"You are in no place to deny it, doctor." She let a small flame dance in her hand, revealing her intentions.

"Where do you think my gas goes?" He asked. She gave him a confused look.

"You know what my semblance is, so you must also know what the vents in the ceiling are for. When they are activated, they suck up any gas in the room, and store it in an on-site storage area, sort of like a septic tank." He leans back. "And should you show hostility, my assistants will activate the protective measures in this room, flooding it with flesh-eating gas. And even if you kill me, none of you will escape either." He let the counter-threat hang in the air, and the silver-haired boy started looking warily at the, otherwise unsuspecting, vents.

"However, it will not need to come to that. I accept your offer, but know that the process of creating the chemical is complicated, time consuming, and expensive, and you will need to provide me with your own men, as turned Grimm are still people, with human minds."

"I'm glad we came to an agreement. I will send an Aura user alongside one of the people working for me within the week." With that, her and her posse stood up and left. Richard waited until they were gone before holding his breath and quickly swapping his nearly full filter and putting in an empty one, then leaving. As he left, he checked the Gas Storage capacity on his Scroll. 93% full. Excellent. He realized that exposing his defense system was a foolish move, and it was one made out of emotion. But now he has a supply of Aura users to do as he wishes with. He will probably have to get tougher glass for the observation room, though. Some were known for being quite powerful.


	3. Compromised

"Commencing trial 1 for Aura experimentation. I will be using the standard, liquid chemical before moving on to other compounds." Dr. Murdoch spoke into his recorder, before setting it on the console. He pressed the button opening the cage. A large icicle immediately flew at him, shattering against the brand new, reinforced glass. He was glad he had the foresight to have it installed. He doubted the old stuff would've held.

The test subject emerged from the cage, her clothes raged, but not completely torn apart. She had short, dark skin and bright blue hair, an indication of her ice-based Semblance. She continued to throw icicles at the glass until Dr. Murdoch became bored and activated his secondary motivation system. The electrified floors. The gas emitters were good for regular people, since it only required a single tough to get them going, but because of these new test subjects' Aura, they would have to inhale it to suffer from the effects. And that was too risky. Their Aura would protect them from the shocks, but they would still feel them.

She immediately started hopping around while yelping in pain. He deactivated them and placed his mouth to the microphone.

"Approach the device and insert your arm into it." He ordered.

"Why should I listen to you, you psycho?!" She yelled, throwing another icicle.

" _She really doesn't learn, does she?"_ He thought to himself. He increased the output of the electric floors, then activated them for a second. She jumped in the air, yowling in pain.

"That is not even close to the maximum voltage. Comply, or this will be extremely painful. The girl glared at him while she was rubbing her feet, but she begrudgingly got up and inserted her arm into the sleeve. The arm clamped down, restraining her. Time to see if the upgraded needle would be strong enough to pierce her Aura.

It shot forward from within the sleeve and, after a moment of resistance, broke through her skin and injected the chemical. The clamp released, and she fell backwards. She began the transformation process the exact same way the previous subjects had. When she finished, she attacked the glass with feral rage, just as predicted. Then she fell unconscious, just as predicted. And finally, she awoke with her mind intact. Just. As. Predicted.

He pressed another button, and a regular Grimm, this time an Ursa, emerged. It went to attack Dr. Murdoch, but couldn't even scratch the glass.

"Use you Semblance to terminate the Grimm." He ordered. After some hesitation, she obeyed, and successfully launched an icicle, skewering the Ursa's brain. Dr. Murdoch was very happy, though he didn't show it. This confirmed that Aura users kept their Semblance through the transformation. But there was still one last thing to test. He released the gas into the chamber. The gas didn't eat into her flesh, but she began coughing up blood as she breathed it in. Eventually she collapsed and began disintegrating. And now he knew they also kept their Aura. This was excellent news.

"Experiment was a complete success. Subject evolved without issue, and still had access to her Aura and Semblance post-evolution. End log." He clicked the button, and the recording ended.

He activated the ventilation in the chamber, clearing out the gas, and left the observation room. As he walked down the halls, he reflected on the developments of the last few months. It had taken a while for Ms. Fall to acquire an Aura user for him to experiment on, but she came through in the end. He pulled out his Scroll and sent her a message saying the Trial was a complete success. Technically, he didn't need to continue this business relationship, since he had what he needed, but ending it now would be risky. He didn't need to risk her coming here and attacking the lab, or worse, reporting his location to the Council. He had to wait until he had finished development on V-2 before abandoning her. Then he could put his plans into motion.

As he proceeded to his office, he felt his Scroll buzz. He checked it, and there was a new message from Ms. Fall " _I am glad it went well. I'll have new test subjects for you soon. If you can, would you mind sending her back to me?"_

" _The subject perished during experimentation."_ He responded.

" _Well, try to keep the others alive."_ With that, the brief conversation ended.

Dr. Murdoch arrived at his office, hung up his lab coat and entered the bathroom. He took off his mask and hung it on the hook next to the mirror. He washed his face with soap to get rid of the smell of rubber. He looked at himself in the mirror. He was slightly aged, some wrinkles coming in around his eyes. He had shaved his head and had a slight stubble. His striking green eyes peered back at him. He chuckled as he noticed the red ring around his face where the mask would be.

He entered the office and sat down at the desk, leaning back and sitting there for a moment. He looked over at the safe on the wall. Inside was a syringe containing a special version of the evolution chemical, meant specifically for him. When the time was right, he would use it and evolve along with the rest of humanity.

The investigation had officially been called off when the authorities couldn't find anything to indicate he was in Vale. They assumed the Grimm they captured had come from one of the other Kingdoms. The fools. But he also knew there was a Huntress group from Beacon investigating him on their own. He wasn't that concerned about it. He had their files, courtesy of Ms. Fall. Team RWBY. He admired them for wanting to do good in the world, but he couldn't let them stop him. They would thank him when all was said and done.

**One month later**

Dr. Murdoch had been very busy. He had told the crime families that he was able to evolve Aura users and they would keep their abilities. That resulted in a slew of Aura using criminals coming in and wanting to be evolved. One of the higher ups had even requested he be evolved. It was all coming had also gotten some of his muscle to begin manufacturing gas bombs, though they didn't have the gas yet.

He was so close to completing V-2, he just knew it. They had started successfully evolving, though they were still feral. That had to be fixed. As he was in his research lab, double checking the chemical he was developing before going to test it, he heard a knock on the door.

"Enter." He said. One of the assistants walked in. Their usual black suit and fedora had been replaced by a black lab coat a while ago, though they refused to abandon the sunglasses. It annoyed him a little.

"Boss, the new Aura subject's here." He informed.

"Excellent. Bring them into one of the cages and I'll be there shortly to commence the experiment." The thug nodded, then left. After doing some final checks, he took the small capsule and made his way to the testing area.

He entered the room and approached the console. He did everything as per usual and opened the cage. The second it was open, a yellow streak flew out of the cage and struck the glass with immense force, cracking it slightly. The woman began screaming angrily as he stood there slack jawed. The golden hair and purple eyes had him frozen. This was Yang Xiao Long, one of the members of team RWBY, the team actively looking for him. This was bad. This was very, very bad. He left the room, ignoring the girl's angry screams, and called Cinder.

" _Hello, Dr. Murdoch. I'm assuming the test we-"_

"Do you have any idea who it is you sent me?" He said, barely containing his anger. How could she be so absent-minded as to send him one of the people looking for him?

" _It was an Aura user we captured. Did it not arrive?"_

"You sent me Yang Xiao Long, a student from Beacon, of all places, and a member of a team that is actively looking for me!" He exploded. "You have put my entire operation at risk! What if she was just bait, and one of her teammates followed her here?"

" _Watch your tone, Dr."_ She warned.

"I will call you back. But right now I need to deal with this situation." He hung up and reentered the observation room. Ms. Xiao Long was looking through the glass. When he entered, she laughed.

"My whole team's gonna be here soon. Do you know how screwed you are?" She taunted.

He didn't respond. Instead, he went to activate the gas dispensers and be rid of her, but there was an explosion. He checked his Scroll, and there was a warning saying the door had been blown open and the lab was compromised. He was about to activate the facility-wide gas dispensers, but there was a second blast, and all the power in the facility went down. It was an EMP.

Dr. Murdoch cursed before running back to his office, where he barricaded the door. He activated the backup generator and used his computer to access the security cameras. After some searching, he saw who was attacking them. It was the rest of team RWBY, along with a group of Atlesian Knights. Richard knew this was it. The defences were down, they were practically right outside the research sector, and the thugs were practically useless.

He was furious. He was doing all this for them. He was sacrificing so much so humanity wouldn't have to worry about the Grimm, and this was how they repaid him? Hunting him like an animal and condemning him in every way possible? He had the answer, and they threw it in his face multiple times! Well, he was done. There was only one thing left to do. He activated the PA system.

"You people are blinded by your hatred of the Grimm, and refuse to see the benefits we could gain from them!" He roared into the microphone, causing the group to pause. "You want a fucking monster? I'll give you a monster!" With that, he activated the self destruct. In one minute, the lab would explode, destroying it along with everything within a city block of it. He quickly opened the wall safe and took out his evolution virus. It was a vantablack liquid, appearing as though it were a piece of void. Rolled up his sleeve, and slammed it into his arm without hesitation. He pushed down on the plunger, and the effects were immediate.

His veins begin to turn black as he pumped the chemical into his body. He fell to the floor and screamed out in pain. His flesh began to turn black as well. His entire body rapidly began to transform. Everything that wasn't skin and bone turned to dust, including his clothes, but he could feel himself become stronger as well. His limbs began to elongate to three times their original length, and his fingers and toes grew and became extremely sharp claws. But the worst part was his mask fusing to his face. His skin bubbled as the straps and whatever else was in contact with him burned into his flesh. Within forty five seconds, he stood to his full height of nine feet. His mask portholes were glowing a terrifying deep red. He could also control his Semblance, choosing when the, now equally red, gas would emerge.

He turned his gaze to the console, and saw he had only seconds. He knelt down and embraced the explosion, for he knew he would survive.

**Later that day, on the news**

"Earlier today, at around 10 AM, a massive explosion erupted in the heart of Vale. It caused thousands of Lien in damages and killed hundreds of people. The police have declined the invitation to speak on the matter, but a public announcement will be held tomorrow regarding the tragedy. Whoever or whatever is responsible for this is currently unknown and will most likely be revealed during the gathering. Many are already mourning the loss of loved ones, and there is an outcry for justice. This has been Lisa Lavender, VNN, and we will see you tomorrow."


	4. Into The Fold

**On the news**

Lisa Lavender was in an interview room with the Chief of Police, Mason Stone, who looked noticeably solemn.

"Thank you for accepting our invitation. We thought you were going to hold a gathering and announce what happened?"

"That was the plan, lass." He spoke with a thick accent. "But plans have changed, and now here I am."

"So, can you tell us what happened two days ago with the explosion?" Chief Stone took his hat off and rubbed his forehead, clearly stressed.

"We had received an anonymous tip that there was something suspicious going on in one of the abandoned houses. We sent team RWBY and a squad of Knights due to both the danger and the fact one of their teammates was suspected to have been captured. When they arrived, they discovered that Richard Murdoch him-fucking-self had a massive lab built just under the surface."

"What happened afterward?"

"Using the footage recovered from one of the bots, we discovered the girls took the Knights and charged in. One of them accidentally took out a powerline with a stray bullet. The second bang that was reported before the explosion was the line overloading and cutting the power to the lab. Freak accident. The place was full of thugs, but before they could get to the important parts of the facility, Murdoch spoke over the PA system. He yelled about how blind they were and that he would have helped them all. Then he said he would 'Give them a fucking monster' before activating the self destruct."

"Did anyone survive?"

"The girls did, thank Ohm. But they're in bad shape, and I wouldn't count on them getting out of the hospital anytime soon."

"Was Dr. Murdoch among the casualties? There's no way he could've escaped."

"Well, we haven't been able to find a body, but the blast may have just destroyed him completely. It's unlikely, but possible."

"Well, thank you Chief Stone. This has been very informative."

"One last thing." He turned to address the camera. "If any of you find any Grimm that won't attack you, report it to the authorities. We don't know how many people the sick bastard turned into Grimm, but we need to find a way to turn them back."

**Downtown Vale, 3 months later, midnight**

Murdoch stalked the streets of the city, silently leaping from rooftop to rooftop looking for people who were foolish enough to be out and about this late to kill. He was being blinded by anger and hatred, and he knew this, but he didn't care. He was going to make them suffer for what they did. He had become the local boogeyman, a scary story people would tell each other to scare them, and try to make him seem less real. His black and slender figure allowed him to be very stealthy, but there was a downside to his evolution that he hadn't expected. He had a strong aversion to sunlight, of all things, to the point that direct contact caused burning pain. It didn't actually damage him, but it did hurt enough to cause him to avoid going out during the day.

He had discovered RWBY had survived the explosion, and that angered him to the point he emerged from his home in the sewers to slaughter an entire household, painting the walls with blood and filling it with gas. He didn't have any plans beyond killing as many people as possible before being killed himself. How could he rebuild from this? He couldn't. Not without outside help.

He heard grunts coming from a nearby alley, and looked down from his perch to see a man looting a dead man's pockets. The man was facing him, but didn't see him crouched on the rooftop. He noticed the murderer was wearing a pendant, a golden circle with a silver teardrop in the center. This type of jewelry was the result of another rumor, that he had an aversion to these symbols and couldn't harm those wearing them. He had almost had a laughing fit when he first heard people discussing that. It was hilarious.

He leapt to the building beside him before silently creeping into the alley. He accidentally knocked a can as he descended, and the man whipped around, sweating and holding out the symbol like his life depended on it. He didn't see the black death waiting just out of his field of view, and turned around to walk out and into the street. Then he grabbed the man's leg and pulled him into the alley and into a manhole, before tearing his insides out and smashing the pendant.

He tossed the body and the pendant shards back into the alley, and went about roaming the vast tunnel system. The sun was going to come out soon, and when that happened, there was sure to be a news story about the murder. Whereas some people, mainly the ones in the poorer places of Vale, thought it was a monster, most thought it was a crazed killer. He had set up a T.V. in one of the more secluded areas of the tunnels, and would watch the news and laugh as they tried to figure out who was killing people. The fools would eventually catch him, but not before he carved a bloody path through the damned city.

When he arrived at his den, it wasn't really a den with the only object there being a battery powered T.V., he was surprised to see evidence of someone else having been here. There were drag marks on the ground that lead in, around the main area, then back out. He was considering taking his T.V. and fleeing when he sensed something behind him. He whipped around, ready to whatever or whoever it was to pieces, but he didn't expect to see what he did. It appeared to be some type of Grimm, but it wasn't one he'd ever seen. It consisted of a red orb atop a bone platform, with red, barbed tendrils sprouting from the bottom. It was dragging a struggling, burly man with a bag over his head.

The red mist swirling through the orb began to clear, revealing the face of a woman. Her skin was whiter than paper, and covered in black veins, and her piecing red eyes seemed to gaze into what was left of his soul.

"You must be the disgraced Dr. Richard Murdoch." She said with a slight smirk.

" **And who might you be?"** He spoke with a voice deeper than his human one, and it seemed to echo itself.

"I am someone who wished to help get revenge on humanity. We seem to share a special hatred of them."

" **Humanity is foolish and not worthy of existing. But if you want me to help you, I need something in return."**

The woman chuckled. "I had a feeling you might say that." The Grimm dragged the still struggling man forward and pulled the bag off, revealing the man's identity. It was Junior.

" **You!"** He roared before grabbing his neck and slamming him into the wall. " **You caused all of this!"** If Junior hadn't used the Grimm for such a stupid thing, the investigation would never have been launched, and RWBY would never have looked into him.

"What the hell are you?!" He screamed in terror. Murdoch could smell his fear. He didn't respond, he only gutted him like a fish and dropped him to rot in the filth.

" **I should've tortured him."** he said with slight regret.

"And if you work for me, you will have free reign to hunt all over Remnant. To hunt those who have wronged you."

" **I will ask again, who are you?"** He asked, not turning away from the corpse.

"I am Salem, Queen of the Grimm." She said with a bigger smirk.

" **Well then Salem,"** He turned to face her, his mask covered in blood. " **What would you have me do?"**

**Vale Hospital, 2:00 AM**

Murdoch had been given a role. There were more people in Salem's group, but he wouldn't be introduced to them until later. For now, he was to be one of her Hunters. And the first of his prey was team RWBY. They were currently residing in one of Vale's hospitals. He was to sneak in and kill them all, except Ruby Rose. She didn't explain why, she only said to bring her to a certain area alive and in one piece. From there he would be brought to their base and introduced to the others.

He climbed up the back wall of the building before entering through a vent. He was extremely flexible despite his large size. His extreme thinness also helped a great deal with that. As he silently crawled through the vents, he took the opportunity to peek through the grates. He was searching for the room in which the girls were contained. They were sure to be asleep.

He was very much tempted to just kill everyone in the hospital, but that would bring too much attention. Eventually he couldn't go any further. The vent cut off, and he had to go into the hall. He quietly removed the grate and peeked inside. There was a guard outside one of the rooms. When he turned his head to look the other way, Murdoch quickly swiped at the lightbulb, destroying it and casting the room into darkness.

The guard whipped around and pointed his rifle at the disturbance. He was terrified. He slowly started making his way across the hall, shaking like a leaf, though his aim never wavered. As he passed beneath the vent, he didn't hear it open until it was too late. Murdoch snatched him, quickly placing a claw over his mouth to muffle his cries. He dragged him up into the vent and tore his head off. He crawled over the man's corpse and slunk into the hallway.

Attached to the roof, he climbed over to the door the guard had been protecting. Reaching down, he grasped the handle and slowly opened the door. He peeked inside, and saw four beds, each one holding a member of RWBY. From the left to the right, there was Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, Yang Xiou Long, and finally Ruby Rose herself. They were all fast asleep, as none of them noticed his entry. He closed and locked the door, then crawled along the floor towards Ruby's bed. She still had some bandages on, so none of them had fully recovered. The self-destruct really did a number on them.

He picked her up and slung her over his shoulders, using the blanket to tie a knot between her hands before wrapping it around his neck to make sure she didn't fall off, and also making her comfortable to ensure she didn't wake. He then positioned himself in the center of the room, and began releasing gas. He was careful and made sure Ruby wouldn't breathe any of it, for her teammates were the ones who were supposed to die. As he was slowly filling the room with gas, there was a knock at the door.

"Is everything alright in there? The door's not supposed to be locked." A female voice came through the door. Right at that moment, a wisp of gas went through the gap between the door and the floor. After a moment, he heard a scream of pain. It was time for him to go. He leapt out of the nearest window causing a loud crash and garnering the attention of everyone who heard it. He landed on a building and started sprinting away on all fours, bounding from rooftop to rooftop.

"Mmm, wha-?" Ruby stirred. He quickly punched her in the head to knock her out. It was inefficient, but it would work until he got to the sewers where he could restrain her. Then he would steal some drugs to knock her out for longer before delivering her to the location. He jumped into a manhole, tearing through the cover. When he landed, it was with only the slightest splash, and then he was off again.

He arrived at his hideout. He immediately went about tying Ruby to a pipe with some thick rope he had gotten before going to the hospital. He scolded himself for not getting some drugs to put her under, but that didn't matter. After securing the bindings, he left the hideout through a nearby manhole cover. He crawled to the top of a building and gazed over the city, searching for a clinic or drugstore.

He spotted one not far from his perch, a drugstore if the big, neon pill on the front was any indication. He traversed the buildings on his way forward. When he arrived at the building adjacent to the clinic, it looked like the place was closed. The lights were off and there didn't seem to be anybody there. After looking both ways to ensure there was nobody there, he jumped onto the street and walked to the entrance. The door was locked, so he climbed to the roof and climbed in through a vent.

He emerged in what appeared to be the back office. He exited the room and began searching the shelves. When he didn't find what he needed, he went to the storeroom. He searched the rows of shelves full of cardboard boxes, each with a different label. Eventually, he found what he was looking for.

" **Benzodiazepine. This should work perfectly."** He grabbed a few bottles from the box and was about to leave when he heard the door open.

"VPD! Come out with your hands up!" Someone shouted, a hint of fear in their voice. The police were here. Someone must've seen him. Then he noticed a faint red LED above the storeroom door. He had triggered a silent alarm. He had never seen a drugstore that rigged their storeroom. It was clever, though. Very clever.

Judging by the footsteps, there was only one officer. His partner must've been waiting in the car should he not return. Still holding the bottles, Murdoch climbed onto the ceiling and scuttled to the door. He knocked a nearby box to the ground, making a loud crash and spilling pills everywhere. The officer started to rapidly make his way to the room. He kicked the door open, and was met with a large clawed hand that cut his head to ribbons with a single swipe.

Murdoch fell from the ceiling and quickly made his way to the air vent. He climbed inside and made his way to the roof. He peeked over the edge and saw a police cruiser sitting outside, another officer, as he predicted. Though he was tempted to kill him, he was stressed for time, and had to leave. He jumped into the manhole behind the drugstore, just in time to hear the sirens start up.

He sprinted through the sewers, before arriving at his home. Ruby was ,surprisingly, still out cold. He hoped he hadn't given her brain damage with that punch. He opened a bottle and took out a pill. He put it in Ruby's mouth, her automatically swallowing it.

" **That should knock you out until we arrive at the pickup spot."**

He picked her up the same way he did when kidnapping her from the hospital, and left his home.


End file.
